Fred WesselsNPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94NPR Digital Services RSS Generator 0.94Fred WesselsFri, 30 Dec 2016 09:08:24 +0000Fred Wesselshttp://news.stlpublicradio.org
Rachel LippmannTwo former St. Louis aldermen will be among the new lawmakers joining the Missouri General Assembly next year. Fred Wessels, who was the 13th Ward alderman until he took a job in the mayor's office until 2013, ran unopposed for the 81st House District seat in southeast St. Louis. A former colleague from City Hall, Donna Baringer, D-16th Ward, easily won the state House seat in the neighboring 82nd District. She officially resigns her city position on Dec. 31.From City Hall to Jefferson City, 2 St. Louisans are moving uphttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/city-hall-jefferson-city-2-st-louisans-are-moving
55103 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgThu, 29 Dec 2016 20:26:27 +0000From City Hall to Jefferson City, 2 St. Louisans are moving upJason Rosenbaum On the latest edition of the Politically Speaking podcast, St. Louis Public Radio’s Jason Rosenbaum and Jo Mannies are pleased to welcome state Rep.-elect Fred Wessels to the program. The St. Louis Democrat — a former alderman and city official — was elected this fall to represent the 81st House District, which takes in most of southeast St. Louis. He defeated two other Democrats, Steve Butz and Adam Kustra, in August, which was tantamount to election in the heavily Democratic district. Wessels accumulated a diverse professional history throughout the years. His job as a hospital administrator took him to Saudi Arabia. He also was the executive director of St. Louis Peregrine Society, which helps cancer patients. He was first elected to the Board of Aldermen in the 1980s, and represented the 13th Ward until the end of 2013. At that time, Wessels resigned from his seat to become St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay’s director of the Community Development Administration. He served in that jobPolitically Speaking: Rep.-elect Wessels on his shift from City Hall to the State Captiolhttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/politically-speaking-rep-elect-wessels-his-shift-city-hall-state-captiol
55079 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgMon, 26 Dec 2016 03:59:04 +0000Politically Speaking: Rep.-elect Wessels on his shift from City Hall to the State CaptiolJason Rosenbaum Many districts in St. Louis and St. Louis County are drawn to be heavily Democratic or Republican. Thus, when a seat opens up, the August primary can be most competitive election for eight years. The victors in these “primary-are-the-election” races will face different realities in Jefferson City, depending on their political parties. Republicans could get a chance to handle big-ticket legislation and move up in leadership. Since they’re a super-minority, Democratic winners will have fewer opportunities to influence the legislative process. But often times, they can provide a counterpoint to the GOP supermajority.Competitive House races abound around the St. Louis regionhttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/competitive-house-races-abound-around-st-louis-region
53509 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgWed, 27 Jul 2016 13:29:48 +0000Competitive House races abound around the St. Louis regionChris McDanielUpdate: Democrat Beth Murphy won Tuesday's special election by a relatively large margin, as least by percentage standards. Murphy ended up with 79 percent of the vote compared to Republican Conan Prendergast's 20 percent. The total number of ballots cast yesterday? 442. Original story: Voters in St. Louis' 13th Ward will have a chance to pick their next alderman in Tuesday's special election. The seat was made vacant when former Alderman Fred Wessels was tapped by Mayor Francis Slay to serve as director of the Community Development Administration. Wessels served on the Board of Aldermen for more than 25 years. The 13th Ward encompasses neighborhoods like Carondelet, Dutchtown and Holly Hills. Two candidates are vying to be Wessels' successor: Democrat Beth Murphy and Republican Conan Prendergast. The Democratic candidate is heavily favored. Murphy was nominated by the city's Democratic Central Committee after serving as the 13th Ward's committeewoman for more than a decade. AccordingMurphy Wins 13th Ward Race To Replace Wesselshttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/murphy-wins-13th-ward-race-replace-wessels
35621 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgWed, 30 Apr 2014 02:39:01 +0000Murphy Wins 13th Ward Race To Replace WesselsJason RosenbaumAs St. Louis Alderman Fred Wessels prepares to leave his post to lead the city’s Community Development Association , a long-time committeewoman is primed to take his aldermanic seat. Beth Murphy told St. Louis Public Radio and the Beacon that she would seek the Democratic nomination for 13th Ward aldermanic seat . Wessels is expected to resign his post in early February , which would likely trigger a special election in April. Murphy has served as the 13 th Ward’s committeewoman since the mid-1990s. She’s taught in St. Louis and St. Louis County schools for nearly three decades and has been active in the ward's civic and business organizations. She said that serving as alderwoman for t he ward that includes neighborhoods such as Holly Hills, Southampton, Boulevard Heights and Carondelet would be the “next level of service” in helping the ward thrive. “I have done more service in this ward probably than anyone I could think of,” Murphy said. “I have painted buildings. I have paintedMurphy May Have Inside Track For Soon-To-Be-Vacant 13th Ward Seathttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/murphy-may-have-inside-track-soon-be-vacant-13th-ward-seat
32748 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgFri, 03 Jan 2014 19:29:33 +0000Murphy May Have Inside Track For Soon-To-Be-Vacant 13th Ward SeatJason RosenbaumWhen a Board of Aldermen committee made changes to St. Louis' community development block grant recommendations, it showed the city's legislative branch asserting itself against a power shift to the executive. But not everybody was happy -- including the agency that gave the city the funds in the first place. “We are hoping in the future those things do not happen again,” James Heard, HUD’s regional field director, said last week. “We have expressed to the city, the HUDZ Committee and the aldermanic board that we were not happy with that process because we are still trying to make sure that the entire process is transparent." While the Board of Aldermen ended up approving the vast majority of the Community Development Administration's block grant recommendations, members of the board’s Housing, Urban Development and Zoning Committee flexed its political muscle and ended up shifting several hundred thousand dollars around. Those changes were sustained on floor of the Board of Aldermen,On The Trail: Aldermen Still Flex Muscle In Block Grant Fundinghttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/trail-aldermen-still-flex-muscle-block-grant-funding
32444 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgThu, 26 Dec 2013 11:00:00 +0000On The Trail: Aldermen Still Flex Muscle In Block Grant FundingJason RosenbaumThis article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon. - St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay has appointed Alderman Fred Wessels to serve as director of the city’s Community Development Administration . It's a move that will conclude the legislative career of one of the Board of Aldermen’s longest serving members.Slay taps Wessels as director for city's Community Development Administration http://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/slay-taps-wessels-director-citys-community-development-administration
51305 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgTue, 03 Dec 2013 19:47:59 +0000Slay taps Wessels as director for city's Community Development Administration Jason RosenbaumThis article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon. - More than a week after an aldermanic committee made funding changes , the St. Louis Board of Aldermen gave initial approval to legislation divvying up $16.7 million in federal block grants. The measure passed 17 to 8, with one abstention.Board of Aldermen approves bill divvying up block grant moneyhttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/board-aldermen-approves-bill-divvying-block-grant-money
51546 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgFri, 08 Nov 2013 18:22:56 +0000Board of Aldermen approves bill divvying up block grant moneyJason RosenbaumThis article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon: The Board of Aldermen is mulling over how to divide the city’s share of federal community development block grant funds. Instead of being divided up among all the wards, the block grants would be distributed this year through a competitive bidding process administered by the Community Development Administration .Aldermen debate new process for divvying up federal block grant fundinghttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/aldermen-debate-new-process-divvying-federal-block-grant-funding
51908 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgFri, 18 Oct 2013 03:21:27 +0000Aldermen debate new process for divvying up federal block grant fundingJason RosenbaumThis article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon: The St. Louis Board of Aldermen will decide later this fall whether to approve a proposal that could jump-start developer Paul McKee’s NorthSide Regeneration project. And the chairman of the committee that will likely consider the tax increment financing proposal says he believes the proposal has enough support throughout the board to pass. But he wants more details and some other aldermen may push for amendments. “I know there’s surely some skepticism, but to me what’s the alternative?” said Alderman Fred Wessels, a 13 th Ward Democrat and chairman of the board’s Housing, Urban Development and Zoning Committee. “There isn’t anyone else who seems to be prepared to invest on the scale that he’s envisioning. I think there will be a majority of aldermen that will want to move forward with it.” As conceived, McKee’s project would use $390 million in tax increment financing as part of a 23-year, $8.1 billion redevelopment of 1,500 acresWessels sees aldermanic support for NorthSide TIF plan and possible amendmentshttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/wessels-sees-aldermanic-support-northside-tif-plan-and-possible-amendments
52188 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgTue, 17 Sep 2013 18:56:48 +0000Wessels sees aldermanic support for NorthSide TIF plan and possible amendmentsJason RosenbaumThis article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon: The St. Louis County Council gave its final blessing to merging some duties of city and county economic development agencies, a move that ratifies a plan announced earlier this year. In early spring, St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay and St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley unveiled the new St. Louis Economic Development Partnership. While both jurisdictions still have their own economic development agencies, the partnership combines programs fostering business development, job creation and entrepreneurship. St. Louis County Economic Council President Denny Coleman will serve as chief executive officer of the new agency. Rodney Crim, executive director at St. Louis Development Corp., will serve as president. The new organization – which includes a shift of about 10 SLDC employees – will be located in Clayton. “In terms of people, the folks involved in business retention, expansion and entrepreneurship across a broad spectrum ofCounty Council approves city-county economic development partnershiphttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/county-council-approves-city-county-economic-development-partnership
52938 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgTue, 18 Jun 2013 19:24:44 +0000County Council approves city-county economic development partnershipMaria AltmanA new economic development agreement between St. Louis City and County is a step closer to reality. The St. Louis Board of Aldermen moved a bill forward Thursday that would create a long-talked about partnership. The bill’s sponsor, Alderman Fred Wessels of the 13th Ward, says it will create entity to serve businesses that want to move into the region. " It would minimize, not eliminate, but it would minimize what I call tax subsidy shopping,” Wessels said. “You know the business goes to the city, they ask what we’ll give them. Then they go to the county, get their reading, and then come back to the city and play one off of the other.” The agreement would bring together 10 employees from the city’s St. Louis Development Corporation and 30 employees from the Economic Council of St. Louis County in one office based in Clayton. Alderman Antonio French voted against the move in part because he says the board was not given full details about the agreement during committee hearings. AndSt. Louis Aldermen Push City-County Economic Partnership Bill Forwardhttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/st-louis-aldermen-push-city-county-economic-partnership-bill-forward
26679 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgThu, 23 May 2013 22:00:46 +0000St. Louis Aldermen Push City-County Economic Partnership Bill ForwardJason RosenbaumThis article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is pressing the city of St. Louis to change how it divvies up Community Development Block Grant funds.City officials see promise - and peril - in changing block grant processhttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/city-officials-see-promise-and-peril-changing-block-grant-process
53313 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgWed, 22 May 2013 16:13:23 +0000City officials see promise - and peril - in changing block grant processRachel LippmannCalling him a rogue public official who needs to be reined in by the courts, south St. Louis city alderman Fred Wessels has filed suit against treasurer Larry Williams , accusing him of illegally implementing a contract to manage the citys 10,000 parking meters. In the lawsuit filed today , Wessels says Williams violated the citys charter and ordinances by entering into a no-bid contract with Duncan Solutions, a Milwaukee-based company, and by not having Comptroller Darlene Green sign the contract before it was executed. (A spokesman for Green says the comptroller has never seen a copy of the contract). This is just one example of the treasurer ignoring city ordinances and city charter, Wessels said. Hes done with with financial services, with engineering, with auditing, with all sorts of professional service contracts. The Duncan Solutions contract, which was signed in April 2009, is also the subject of a legal challenge by former employees of the treasurers office. In January, theCity treasurer candidate sues incumbent over no-bid contractshttp://news.stlpublicradio.org/post/city-treasurer-candidate-sues-incumbent-over-no-bid-contracts
3014 as http://news.stlpublicradio.orgMon, 06 Feb 2012 22:15:20 +0000City treasurer candidate sues incumbent over no-bid contracts